Whiplash compensation news
14/12/2010

GPs careful with neck injury claims

As many as 90% of doctors say that they have seen patients they believe to be exaggerating symptoms in order to proceed with whiplash compensation claims, according to a survey carried out by insurance company LV=.

However, it would seem that doctors are increasingly less likely to take at face value patients' claims about their car crash injury symptoms. Nearly half of GPs said they now take more time to investigate the veracity of symptoms, while 39% said they had refused to write medical evidence supporting a whiplash compensation claimant.

Despite this, LV= was keen to stress the distinction between genuine claimants and those who were exaggerating symptoms or engaged in plain fraud. "Clearly anyone who has a genuine injury as a result of an accident that wasn't their fault, and loses out or can't work as a result of it, is entitled to compensation," said a spokesperson.

He added, "However, anyone trying to get money for an injury that doesn't exist is not only breaking the law but also wasting valuable NHS time and resources."

The survey also looked at the number of people who have made a personal injury claim, sometimes for whiplash compensation, as a direct result of having seen a television advertisement for no win, no fee solicitor services: 17% of respondents said they had done so.